Knife Used On Delta Airliner Was Not Illegal

Even if the small knife used in the hostage-taking on board a Fort Lauderdale-to-Dallas flight Wednesday had been detected at the airport, authorities would have had no legal right to confiscate it.

The blade of the folding pocket knife was 2 1/2 inches long. Only knives with blades 3 inches or longer are prohibited by the Federal Aviation Administration.

The knife, which was 5 inches long including the handle, was wielded by a Fort Lauderdale man to seize a flight attendant briefly on a Delta Air Lines jet in Dallas. Police said Ralph A. Hughes II, 34, held the knife to the steward`s neck until overpowered by police.

Officials do not know whether Hughes went through the checkpoint at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport with the knife on his person or in a carry-on case. The distinction is important because if he were carrying the knife, it should have set off the walk-through metal detector. Carry-on parcels are checked by X-ray but are not subjected to a metal detector.

Delta representatives said there would be no change in the airline`s security because some potential weapons, such as small knives, can`t practically or legally be kept off an airplane.

Officials said passengers could conceivably use anything from airline silverware to knitting needles as a weapon.

``There are a lot of handbags that have manicure scissors and that kind of thing,`` said Delta spokesman Greg Johnson in Fort Lauderdale. ``And then you get into a problem with the in-flight meals. Where do you draw the line?``

Dan Smith, spokesman for the International Airline Passengers Association in Dallas, said: ``There are so many ways a person can be threatened. Some people can kill with their bare hands.``

Johnson said airline officials tested the security checkpoint at the airport Thursday morning by attempting to pass through to the airplane gates with guns, which set off the metal detectors, he said.

A team of FAA security inspectors is continuing to review Delta`s security procedures and training at Fort Lauderdale, FAA spokesman Jack Barker said.

Delta could face a maximum $1,000 civil fine if violations are discovered.

In Washington, D.C., on Thursday, a New York congressman introduced a bill designed to increase FAA security inspections at the airport in Fort Lauderdale and 19 others from once every three months to once a month.